


The Universe Waits For No One

by koreabooeauty



Category: The Expanding Universe Of Ashley Garcia
Genre: F/F, F/M, First Kiss, Growing Up, Panic Attacks, Polyamory, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:27:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23339143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/koreabooeauty/pseuds/koreabooeauty
Summary: Ashley Garcia is a genius at fifteen years old, She had her first kiss with a cute boy, so why does her heart hurt so much? She loved someone else, two someone else's to be exact. And those two happened to be dating each other. Also her best friends. Can she genius her way out of this problem?
Relationships: Ashley Garcia/Stick Goldstein/Brooke Bishop
Comments: 13
Kudos: 50





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> There are no fics to this show and if I have to write my own then I will. Is this just what I want? Yes. Let Ashley have a boyfriend and a girlfriend!! Let Tad move on from Bella! Victor writes songs and teaches Ashley to play guitar because he's realizing that he's so much more then he thought!!

It wasn't how Ashley Garcia imagined her first kiss going, in fact she's begun to think that she'd rather have kissed one of Brooke's friends at that sleepover. It's not that Tad was a bad kisser, he was anything but actually, That made her even more anxious. Instead of enjoying it, she felt stiff, awkward. 

Maybe it was also because she knew she was being used. 

She wasn't as clueless as everyone thought she was, she saw the way Tad and Bella talked by the punch bowl. How Tad's eyes drifted from Bella's to hers before returning his gaze on his ex. 

There was no point in bringing it up. She was doing the same thing, or along the same lines. She wasn't too sure what she was doing actually. All that she knew was that she wanted to go home. 

First kiss achieved, she'd had a great night. What a joke. 

"Tio Victor, can I come home?"

Ashley had snuck out of the gym, retrieving her phone from the pockets her dress concealed. Brooke and her had squealed over them before the blonde had left to go pick up Stick from practice.

"Of course, Mija."

Victor knew that the fall ball was going to be rough, had texted her in the limo that she could text him whenever she wanted to leave. No questions asked. 

The autumn air did nothing to warm her spirits, causing her to rub her hands together to keep her warm. She huffed out puffs of warm air, laughing at the memories of her pretending to be a dragon. She had always been a genius, but that was something every kid had done.

Distracted by her thoughts, she hadn't realized the few tears that managed to slip past her eyes, leaving a trail of wetness on her cheeks. Letting out a bitter laugh, she wiped her face. 

Couldn't wait to be a teenager, huh?

The small red jeep that picked her up made her laugh, it was the first car Victor had gotten. So many of her baby pictures involved the jeep, even in just the background. It was family. 

"Hop in, princessa."

Ashley rolled her eyes, unable to hide the smile that was on her face. For once, she didn't mind how small she felt in front of him. It was familiarity, safety in the way he rambled about things to fill the silence because they both knew she disliked it. 

"I'm going to make churros. Do you want chocolate or coffee?"

It was going to be a long night, she appreciated him offering to partake in her sulking, but she was going to be okay. She had to be. 

"Thank you, Tio. But I think I just want to be alone tonight."

They pulled into the driveway, parking the jeep back into the garage, where Ashley smiled at the sight of the car Victor usually drove. He picked the jeep for her. 

"You're never alone, Ashley. I'll be in your corner forever. Te amo, Chiquita."

He pressed his lips to her forehead, a soft kiss that reminded her of when he moved away. The night at the airport, where her mom and him fought, but he still made time for her. He always did. 

"Te amo, Tio."

He left the jeep first, entering the house through the garage. Ashley sighed, gathering the fabric of her dress in her hands. Her phone rang, vibrating as it alerted her of a new next message. 

Brooke-  
Did you get home safe?

Her heart raced a little faster, fingers dancing mindlessly against the screen as she thought of her reply. She hadn't made up a reason as to why she left early, just said she was going home. 

Ashley-  
Yeah, thanks for checking in. Talk Tomorrow?

She still hadn't gotten used to emojis but she was getting better. 

Exiting the jeep, she made sure that no fabric got stuck in door. No need to repeat the problems from earlier. Climbing the steps was difficult, she was never good in heels, even if the ones were barely off the ground. 

Removing the dress from her body and putting on pajamas, she wandered into the bathroom, washing off her makeup and brushing her teeth. Drying her face, she heard her phone, letting her know she got another text. 

Plopping down on her bed, she checked the text as she plugged it in into her charging station. 

Brooke-  
Of course! Love you, Ash

Palms sweaty, smile on her face, she typed back her response. 

Ashley-  
Love you too, B

Turning off her phone, she put it away. Covering herself under the thick blankets and quilts she had brought into her room months ago. The stars outside her window twinkled as she counted them, lulling herself to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Morning came faster then she wanted. 

That was usually the case though. 

With a groan, she pulled herself in a sitting position, taking an elastic off her wrist to throw her hair into a messy bun. Not a messy bun like Brooke managed to pull off, but one that could have a family of squirrels residing in it.

Victor wouldn't ask questions, but she'd still tell him what happened. He'd probably do the same about Ava. It's just how their relationship worked. He also wouldn't care that she was wearing a shirt way too big for her, going up to her knees. 

She padded down the stairs, smelling cafe bustelo, unmistakably comfort breakfast. Not that it was a bad thing, they both could use a taste of home. 

"Mornin'! How'd you sleep, bedhead?"

He was flipping bacon on a pan, sliding around in his socks as Ashley sat at the table, hamming it up to make her laugh. She did. 

"It was fine, didn't want morning to come."

He hummed at her answer, passing her plates and forks so she could set their spots. They worked quickly, both used to the routine. 

"But it did, it always will."

Ashley hummed back in response, giggling at Victor rolling his eyes at her. 

Soon their plates were filled with food. Quietly eating, the only noises being the utensils hitting the plates or when they put their glasses back on the table. 

Placing down her fork, Ashley took a deep breath. She wasn't scared, there were few times that she was afraid to tell her uncle something, she was nervous. Nervous that this was an actual adult conversation she wanted to have, that she was growing up and had feelings that she didn't even understand. 

"I kissed Tad last night." 

Victor didn't look too surprised, his eyebrows only furrowing as he thought of what to say to his niece. His fork stilled as well, stabbed on a sausage. 

"I thought you didn't like him anymore?"

Victor stared at her, trying to understand a teen girls mind. It wasn't going to work though, half the time she didn't even get it. The other half was when she was doing work, science was easier to figure out.

"I don't, I mean, not romantically? But, he wanted to make Bella jealous and I wanted to not feel the way I felt anymore." 

Stabbing her own sausage, she popped it into her mouth, chewing before she stood up to wash her plate. She did the dishes, or helped depending on how Victor was feeling. 

"Feel how?"

Ashley didn't know if the questions were supposed to help him understand of help her understand, either way, there wasn't going to be a whole lot of learning going on. 

"Jealous? I can't explain it. I'm happy Brooke and Stick are happy, they're my friends!"

She slammed the fork back into it's drawer, nose wrinkling as they clattered out of their spot due to her force. 

"But?"

Hesitating, she fixed the forks, shutting the drawer gently to turn around. Facing her uncle. Her hands messed with edges of her shirt, releasing some of the anxiety she had built up.

"But I feel left out? That isn't the right word either, I miss the way things were. That I was the center of everything? That sounds bad."

Ashley sighed, eyes fluttering close as she rubbed her forehead, feeling the beginning of a migraine. They came and went, often she had to take painkillers to dull them down. It was partly due to her stress, but they also ran in her fathers side of the family, thus why Victor didn't have them. 

"It's okay. You shouldn't feel bad for the things you feel, you're allowed to have emotions."

Smiling at her uncle, she nodded. Even if she did feel bad, she was going try to part with it. There was no use in it. If she felt that way then she'd have to grow from it. She'd followed the steps before, she could lose another crush. Or two. 

"I just need to get my mind off of it. Brooke wanted to go to mini golf."

It wasn't what she wanted, but Brooke had promised it'd be only the two of them, plus Stick wasn't allowed to return to mini golf after the last time they went as a group. Accidental or not, falling into the pond wasn't a good look.

"Why don't you just stay home, we could do something here?"

Now it was her turn to furrow her eyebrows at her uncle. He was usually excited when she went out, that her got the house to himself. 

"Like what?"

She asked, curious as to what he was going to offer. Last time, it had been how to have good hair, which she'd laughed at. She could've used the lesson today, truth be told. 

"I could teach you guitar?" 

"Deal."

She'd never wanted to learn before, in fact when she was younger and her mom had signed her up for the piano, she had sworn off all musical instruments after failing to learn hot cross buns. 

But Victor looked excited to teach her, to share passion with her. So she took out her phone and texted Brooke that she was busy and moved into the living room, where the two sat on the couch and went over the cords, laughing as Ashley messed them up. 

Things would be okay.


	3. Chapter 3

After she had successfully learned that at least three chords, and had whined about her fingers hurting, Victor had let her escape to her room. 

She was mindlessly writing a paper on rocks, enjoying the way her brain could focus on something she actually knew. Or at least it was until her phone vibrated. It wasn't Brooke, It was actually Tad. Who she didn't mind talking to even though she looked like she was dragged though bushes. So she answered the facetime. 

"Hi, Tad."

She waved at the camera, placing her phone on her nightstand so she could still work on the paper. It wasn't even work, it was just something she enjoyed doing. Every so often she might send one into the newspaper to see if she could get in it. 

"Ashley!"

Tad seemed surprised, making her look up from her laptop. He'd probably just gotten out of the shower, his hair wet and sticking to his forehead. A few weeks ago and she probably would've swooned, now she was just worried about him getting a cold. 

"That's me!"

He nodded, as if he was agreeing that she was in fact her and not some clone that she had made, which if she could clone herself, she wouldn't use it to answer facetimes, that just seemed like a waste of resources. 

"Are you okay?"

Tad asked, chewing on his bottom lip as he stared st her through the camera. His brown eyes shimmering as the sun brought out the flecks of gold in them.

"I'm getting there. How are you? Sorry I ditched you at the fall ball, I just, couldn't be there any longer."

Ashley apologized, she'd realized after breakfast that she probably should have at least asked Tad if he wanted a ride home. 

"Because of me?"

Ashley tilted her head, confused before realizing what he was asking about. She flushed, biting her own bottom lip as she thought of how to reply without hurting his feelings. It wasn't like they liked one another, they both were too infatuated with others. 

"No, Tad! The kiss was fine, I mean, better then fine. I just wish it happened under different circumstances."

She didn't really wanna say what circumstances she wished those were, because as kind as Tad was, he wasn't good at keeping secrets, and Ashley didn't want the story of her crushes getting out. 

"Me too."

The two were quiet for a while. Each one thinking about their own circumstances, how the kiss had even come to fruition. It wasn't because they wanted to kiss each other had they done so, it was for others. To make someone jealous, to get someone out of their head. 

"How did it go with Bella after I left?"

Ashley asked, ready to ignore the pounding in her heart. She was sick of crushes. First on Tad, then Stick, then Brooke, she was ready to lock her heart away. 

Tad sighed, his head falling back. 

"She got upset, saying that I shouldn't have kissed you, that it didn't even make her jealous. We got into a fight. I realized it after I left that I don't even want to date her anymore. It's not fun, I don't like that I always have to compromise while she does whatever she wants. We're done."

Ashley smiled at him, pleased to see that he'd found a solution and seemed resolute to it. She knew how difficult it was to stop things, especially when you cared so much for a person. That her mind raced with thoughts of him being free to date, even if he wasn't the one she wanted. 

"Good for you, Tad. I'm proud of you."

He beamed at her, his cheeks red. She laughed, this would always be one of her favorite sights. One of her best friends happy, content to spend time with her. 

They were okay.


	4. Chapter 4

Ashley had hung up after an hour, the two had gone over some math homework Tad wanted to make sure he had correct. Her phone had rung from texts from the two she was nervous to talk to. If there was one thing she knew, it was waiting made things worse, unless it was waiting for hot pockets in the microwave, then it was better to give them an extra minute and a half so the middles wouldn't be frozen. 

The text was from Stick, which made her wanna collapse on the spot and scream. Stick hated texting, said it made him anxious enough to vomit. The only people he often texted were Tad and Brooke. 

Stick-  
Movie tomorrow?

Ashley grimaced, unable to stop herself from replying quickly. She knew that Stick got even more anxious when she didn't respond. There was no reason to torment him when she knew what her answer was going to be. 

Ashley-  
Sure! Tell Brooke I get to pick.

And that was the conversation. Not like how hers and Brooke's dragged on for hours, how Ashley would giggle at text messages, or the way Brooke teased her for using the wrong emojis in conversation. 

Texting Stick made her anxious, not even because she had on a crush on him first, but because their anxiety feed off of each other. Not even Tad could save her tomorrow. 

She was definitely going to be a third wheel.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it! The last chapter!! I hoped you all liked it!! It took me three hours to write and I'm not beta-ing it so whoops

Ashley had hung up after an hour, the two had gone over some math homework Tad wanted to make sure he had correct. Her phone had rung from texts from the two she was nervous to talk to. If there was one thing she knew, it was waiting made things worse, unless it was waiting for hot pockets in the microwave, then it was better to give them an extra minute and a half so the middles wouldn't be frozen. 

The text was from Stick, which made her wanna collapse on the spot and scream. Stick hated texting, said it made him anxious enough to vomit. The only people he often texted were Tad and Brooke. 

Stick-  
Movie tomorrow?

Ashley grimaced, unable to stop herself from replying quickly. She knew that Stick got even more anxious when she didn't respond. There was no reason to torment him when she knew what her answer was going to be. 

Ashley-  
Sure! Tell Brooke I get to pick.

And that was the conversation. Not like how hers and Brooke's dragged on for hours, how Ashley would giggle at text messages, or the way Brooke teased her for using the wrong emojis in conversation. 

Texting Stick made her anxious, not even because she had on a crush on him first, but because their anxiety feed off of each other. Not even Tad could save her tomorrow. 

She was definitely going to be a third wheel. 

-

She had let Victor know what they were going to be doing, he promised not to peek in, but she knew he most likely would. She couldn't fault him for it either, her life was a telenovela. 

The plans were that the couple was going to come by at twelve, watch a movie and hang out until four. She could do this. This was fine. She was going to kick it's butt and look completely fine doing it. 

"Ashley! Brooke and Stick are here."

She couldn't do it. She was going to explode, or worse she was going to break the dvd she borrowed from the library. 

"Ash?"

It wasn't often that she had panic attacks, she could count them on one hand actually. But they were horrifying no matter how many time you got them. The way you feel like you aren't getting enough oxygen, that your brain tells you you're dying and it makes you freak out worse.

In theory, Ashley knows how to calm herself down. To say six thing she can see, five things she can hear, four things she can feel, so on. But when she was actually in it, it was hard to calm herself down. 

"You're okay, Ash. Just breathe. I've got you."

In through her nose, out with her mouth. 

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

Her lungs hurt. 

She felt someone drying her tears. If the long blonde hair was anything to go by, it was Brooke. 

She couldn't see Stick in her room. 

"He went downstairs to give us some space. Do you wanna say what happened? It's okay if you don't Ash."

Brooke said, running her hands through Ashley's hair, letting the brunette hear her heartbeat as her head rested on the blondes chest. 

"It's dumb."

Ashley mumbled, unable to even tell if her friend would be able to understand what had come from her mouth. Even she could barely do so. 

"I'll tell you if it is or not."

Brooke replied, fingers pausing their dance in Ashley's hair to get the message through. The blonde would always look out for her friend. Ashley's heart swelled. 

"About seeing you and Stick."

This time Ashley mumbled even worse, ready to say never mind and hope they could all ignore what happened. It'd probably be the best she could get, she didn't want to ruin her friendships, what was she doing? 

"Us? Why? We're your friends, Ashley."

Was she doing this? Risking her friendship for what?

"Exactly."

She was doing it. 

"Can you explain?"

Ashley lifted her head off of Brooke's chest, staring at her before answering. 

"I like Stick."

Brooke hesitated, her appearance faltering but before she could say anything, Ashley cut her off. 

"And you." 

Both sat frozen in their spots, staring at each other, waiting to see what the next move was. 

"Since when?"

Brook's voice was soft, mush softer then it had been when she was calming Ashley down. She hadn't thought it was possible. 

"I realized I liked him the day after your video resume was done. But when you told me you liked him too, I realized I wasn't jealous of only you. I was jealous of him too, I mean, that I had a crush on both of you."

Ashley rambled, her fingers playing with the edge of Brooke's jacket. She wasn't even sure if Brooke was gay, it'd been a dumb idea to say anything about it. 

"It's okay! I'm going to get rid of it though, I kissed Tad so it should go away eventually! I understand if you don't wanna hang out with me until then."

Brooke rolled her eyes, effectively breaking Ashley's anxious mumbling. 

"You're right, it was dumb."

Tears gathered in Ashley's eyes, but she refused to cry. She had plenty of to do so later. Trying to get out of Brook's arms, Ashley face grew more flushed as she struggle. Tears escaping her eyes as her body grew rigid in the blonde's grasp. 

"It was dumb to think that we wouldn't hang out with you. That wouldn't be interested in you just because we have each other? Ashley Garcia, you're my best friend. You're the first girl I had a crush on."

Brook was shaking, tears escaping her own eyes as well. 

"Is this a bad time?"

Stick asked, knocking on the door.

Ashley froze, staring at Brooke, trying to see if the blonde would answer. Possibly even let her go.

"Come in."

That wasn't really what Ashley was hoping for, but there was no way to stop it now. 

Stick entered Ashley's bedroom, pausing when he saw the two on the bed. He pouted, his eyebrows furrowing as he did so. 

"Did you guys forget about me?"

Ashley choked out a laugh, smiling as Brooke rolled her eyes again. 

"Stick, can you read the room?"

Brooke asked, releasing one of her grasps from Ashley's shirt so she could turn to stare at her boyfriend who flushed in response. 

He stuck out his tongue at her.

"Stick."

He nervously smiled, sensing the room go back to the tenseness from before he had entered. 

"Tell Ashley."

Brooke smiled at her boyfriend, beckoning him to sit on the bed. If Victor looked in now, he'd have a heart attack. 

The three were sat on the bed, way too close for Ashley's liking. She was sure they could all hear her heart. 

"Tell Ashley what?"

Stick asked, face steadily growing redder as Brooke's hand held his. 

"That you like her."

His face was the color of a tomato. His eyes wide as his snapped so Brooke was all he was staring at. 

"What! No! Do you know how badly that would go? That she'd hate me, and then us, and then you'd break up with me and then I have to adopt a cat named Samantha to avoid being alone but I'm allergic to cats so I die!"

The two girls stared at him as he panicked, mumbling how he didn't know anything about taking care of cats and cremation.

"I like you, Stick."

Ashley blurted out, cutting into whatever he'd moved onto from talking about burial site fees. The brunette teen smiled, his eyes looking hopeful. 

"You do?"

Ashley nodded. Smile on her own face. 

"That's- wow."

Stick smiled back, grinning at the two girls. 

Brooke held Ashley's jaw softly, staring into her brown eyes.

"Can I kiss you?"

Ashley nodded, closing the gap between them. It was a soft kiss, nothing like the one she had at the dance. But it felt like home. Like everything she wanted. 

When they pulled apart they smiled at each other, Brooke's hand still resting on Ashley's jaw. Thumb stroking her cheek. 

"You're a better kisser then Tad."

Ashley giggled, causing Brooke to follow suit. The tenseness draining from their bodies as the melted into mush piles onto the bed, content to bask in each others presence. 

Until Stick asked a question.

"You kissed Tad? When? I'm the last one to kiss you in the friend group? Who had a crush on you first? 

Ashley laughed once more, going to explain how it all started before she was cut off by Brooke. 

"Get in line, I've been here since we were ten. You'll get your turn, lover boy."

She teased, pressing a kiss to his cheeks. He pouted, or pretended to do so, until Ashley did the same. Both their cheeks a shade of red, as Stick spluttered, mumbling as the girls laughed. 

Even if they weren't okay, they could get through it together.


End file.
